encephalomyelitis

encephalomyelitis

[en-sef″ah-lo-mi″ĕ-li´tis]

inflammation of the brain and spinal cord.

acute disseminated encephalomyelitis an acute or subacute encephalomyelitis or myelitis occurring most commonly following an acute viral infection, especially measles, but sometimes occurring without a recognizable antecedent. Clinical manifestations include fever, headache, vomiting, and drowsiness progressing to lethargy and coma; tremor, seizures, and paralysis may also occur. Mortality ranges from 5 to 20 per cent, and many survivors have residual neurologic deficits.

equine encephalomyelitis a type of encephalomyelitis in horses and mules, caused by an alphavirus and spread to humans by mosquitoes; it occurs in summer epizootics in the Western Hemisphere. Three forms are recognized: eastern, western, and Venezuelan. Called also equine encephalitis.

equine encephalomyelitis, eastern a viral disease similar to western equine encephalomyelitis, but occurring in a region extending from New Hampshire to Texas and as far west as Wisconsin, and in Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and parts of Central and South America.

equine encephalomyelitis, Venezuelan a viral disease of horses and mules, transmissible to humans; the causative agent was first isolated in Venezuela. The infection in humans resembles influenza, with little or no indication of nervous system involvement.

equine encephalomyelitis, western a viral disease of horses and mules, communicable to humans, occurring chiefly as a meningoencephalitis with little involvement of the medulla oblongata or spinal cord; observed in the United States chiefly west of the Mississippi River.

granulomatous encephalomyelitis a disease marked by granulomas and necrosis of the walls of the cerebral and spinal ventricles.

eastern equine encephalomyelitis (EEE) a viral disease of horses and mules that can be spread to humans, usually affecting children and the elderly and manifested by fever, headache, and nausea followed by drowsiness, convulsions, and coma; in the United States it occurs primarily east of the Mississippi river.

Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis (VEE) a viral disease of horses and mules; the infection in humans resembles influenza, with little or no indication of nervous system involvement; the causative agent was first isolated in Venezuela.

western equine encephalomyelitis (WEE) a viral disease of horses and mules, communicable to humans, occurring chiefly as a meningoencephalitis, with little involvement of the medulla or spinal cord; observed in the United States chiefly west of the Mississippi River.

encephalomyelitis

(ĕn-sĕf′ə-lō-mī′ə-lī′tĭs)

n.

Inflammation of the brain and spinal cord.

encephalomyelitis

[ensef′əlōmī′əlī′tis]

Etymology: Gk, enkephalos + myelos, marrow, itis

an inflammatory condition of the brain and spinal cord that damages myelin, characterized by fever, headache, stiff neck, back pain, and vomiting. Depending on the cause, the age and condition of the person, and the extent of the inflammation and irritation to the central nervous system, seizures, paralysis, personality changes, a decreased level of consciousness, coma, or death may occur. Sequelae, such as seizure disorders or decreased mental ability, may occur after severe inflammation that causes extensive damage to the cells and tissues of the nervous system. See also acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, encephalitis,equine encephalitis.

encephalomyelitis

Infection of the brain and spinal cord. See Experimental allergic encephalomyelitis.

en·ceph·a·lo·my·e·li·tis

(en-sef'a-lō-mī'ĕ-lī'tis)

Inflammation of the brain and spinal cord.

[encephalo- + G. myelon, marrow, + -itis, inflammation]

encephalomyelitis

Inflammation of the brain (ENCEPHALITIS) and spinal cord (MYELITIS). Acute demyelinating encephalomyelitis may follow minor infectious diseases or vaccination and cause widespread loss of the myelin sheath of nerve fibres with paralysis, seizures and coma. The condition known as ‘ME’ (myalgic encephalomyelitis) is not a brain inflammation.

en·ceph·a·lo·my·e·li·tis

(en-sef'a-lō-mī'ĕ-lī'tis)

Inflammation of brain and spinal cord.

[encephalo- + G. myelon, marrow, + -itis, inflammation]

encephalomyelitis

inflammation of both the brain (encephalitis) and spinal cord (myelitis). The pathogenesis and clinical picture are similar to those of encephalitis. The pathological lesions, however, include a significant involvement of the spinal cord. Many of the causes are viral as they are in encephalitis.

arthropod-borne encephalomyelitis

a number of viral agents responsible for causing encephalomyelitis are transmitted by arthropods. See arbovirus.

avian encephalomyelitis

caused by an enterovirus this disease affects young birds up to few weeks old. There is an obvious tremor of the neck, followed by weakness and incoordination and finally paralysis and death.

there are three known serotypes of the family Togaviridae, genus Alphavirus that cause encephalomyelitis of horses and which occur only in the Americas and are transmitted by mosquitoes. The horse is a terminal host for the eastern and western serotypes; the reservoir of the infection is probably birds and other native fauna. For the Venezuelan virus the horse is also a donor host along with birds and other fauna. The disease has great zoonotic significance because of its high prevalence in epidemic years, and significant mortality rate in humans. Clinical signs in horses include initial excitement, muscle tremor, walking in circles, followed by a paralytic phase including somnolence, staggering, dropping of the head and finally recumbency. Most infections are subclinical.

experimental allergic encephalomyelitis

inoculation of animals with brain tissue in Freund's complete adjuvant produces an autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Called also EAE.

granulomatous encephalomyelitis

a disease marked by granulomatous inflammation and necrosis of the walls of the cerebral and spinal ventricles.

hemagglutinating encephalomyelitis virus disease of pigs

a disease of sucking pigs caused by a coronavirus characterized by the occurrence of two different clinical forms of the disease. They are probably the extremes of a clinical spectrum of one disease because both may be seen in the one outbreak in one piggery. The encephalitic form is characterized by incoordination, convulsions and death in 2-3 days. In the other form the principal signs are vomiting, inability to drink and severe dehydration and emaciation—hence vomiting and wasting disease. Called also Ontario encephalitis.

Israeli turkey encephalomyelitis

nonsuppurative encephalomyelitis of turkeys caused by a flavivirus and carried by insects, probably mosquitoes. Manifested by a progressive paralysis.

the cause is a virus, antigenically identical with the Borna disease virus, which normally infects birds, but in its transport by a vector tick it infects horses. The disease is clinically indistinguishable from borna disease.

caused by members of the genus, Teschovirus, family Picornaviridae. The virulence of the viruses and the severity of the diseases that they cause varies. Clinically the disease is characterized by a syndrome comprising hyperesthesia, paresis and convulsions but the severity is very much less in older pigs than in baby pigs. Adult pigs are commonly infected but show no clinical signs. Also known as Teschen disease, Talfan disease, poliomyelitis suum.

postinfectious encephalomyelitis

inflammation of the brain and spinal cord following vaccination or infection. Was commonly seen after the administration of earlier rabies vaccines containing brain tissue.

postvaccinal encephalomyelitis

see postinfectious encephalomyelitis (above).

sporadic bovine encephalomyelitis

caused by Chlamydophila pecorum and characterized by inflammation of vessel walls, serous membranes and synoviae, with incidental involvement of nervous tissue in some cases. Clinically there is high fever and weakness, circling and knuckling in some. At necropsy there is fibrinous peritonitis, pleurisy and pericarditis—hence serositis—as well as encephalomyelitis. Called also transmissible serositis, Buss disease, SBE.

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